After Rebirth, My Wife Turned Out to Be Myself - Chapter 61
On the day the Northern Army arrived in the capital, Xie Yunyu led the assembled officials to the city gates to welcome them.
Anyu dismounted and, as expected, spotted Xu Ping among the crowd of officials.
Xu Ping naturally saw her too, his calm smile concealing deep-seated hatred.
If their conflict with the Xie family was merely that of old rivals before, now it was a matter of life and death.
Resentment? Anyu was indifferent. What right did Xu Ping have to resent them? Why did his two sons die? It was the father’s fault for not raising his sons properly. Moreover, it was undeniably true that the assassination attempt was carried out by the Xu brothers.
Anyu ignored that gaze, suddenly thought of something, looked left and right, and asked her eldest cousin innocently, “Minister Xie, did Her Majesty not come to greet me?”
In fact, Her Majesty had been with her just two hours ago.
And now, she should indeed be back in the palace.
No one present thought there was anything wrong with Anyu’s words. If she were just some ordinary general, she would never dare to say things like the Emperor personally coming to greet her.
But the person before them was not only one of the Northern Army’s generals but also the most favored Consort Wan in the palace.
Xie Yunyu frowned, “Her Majesty… did not come.”
A look of grievance appeared on Anyu’s face.
“Your Ladyship is unaware, Her Majesty is unwell and has been confined to bed for several days.”
Anyu was startled upon hearing this, “Seriously ill? What happened?”
Xie Yunyu glanced around and did not elaborate.
Anyu instantly understood and nodded immediately, “General Xie, I will return to the palace first to see Her Majesty. I will leave the matters of the Northern Army to you.”
Xie Yunliang nodded, “Your Ladyship, rest assured.”
In the Northern Army, he was a commander, but back in the capital, his sister was Consort Wan.
Just as Anyu was about to leave, a carriage suddenly drove out from the city.
The carriage was luxurious, even the curtains were made of fine palace fabric. And the carriage was faintly carved with the character ‘Imperial’.
The attendant driving the carriage shouted loudly, “Her Majesty arrives—”
The officials were startled and quickly looked over, then knelt down one after another.
“Your subjects pay respects to Her Majesty!”
Xu Ping naturally knelt as well, raising his head slightly to look at the carriage, his expression filled with surprise and uncertainty.
The Emperor’s health was poor, and she had not held court for over a month…
According to the information Xu Ping had gathered, for over a month, Her Majesty had remained in her sleeping quarters, rarely seeing anyone. Even when Grand Consort Qin visited, she was turned away.
When he asked the Imperial Physicians through intermediaries, they only said that Her Majesty was indeed seriously ill.
Xu Ping was somewhat skeptical about the Emperor being seriously ill. Especially since, while seriously ill, she suddenly stopped confining him and released him from the Censorate Office.
His confidants were also puzzled, asking if perhaps Her Majesty was truly gravely ill and needed him to oversee the court affairs.
Xu Ping did not commit, but he did not believe it in his heart.
After ‘living’ in the Censorate Office for so long, he hadn’t figured out much else, but he had figured out one thing—Her Majesty would truly no longer trust him.
He even felt that he was a fool for thinking that going along with Her Majesty’s wishes would regain her favor.
Her Majesty had long since stopped trusting the Xu family.
If there was even a shred of trust left, she wouldn’t have driven both of his sons to their deaths.
Xu Ping didn’t care about Her Majesty’s trust anymore.
He wanted revenge, revenge for the death of his sons and the end of his lineage… a life-and-death struggle.
Getting back to the point, he always felt that the matter of Her Majesty being seriously ill and releasing him was too strange.
Thinking of the worst-case scenario, was Chu Long waiting for him to rebel?
But how could he rebel at this time! His foundation was unstable, he had no money, no troops. The money he had planned to use to raise private soldiers had been confiscated by the Emperor and sent to the national treasury.
The only thing he could still rely on was the network of connections he had accumulated over years of maneuvering in court.
If Chu Long was deliberately feigning illness to set such a trap for him, wouldn’t it be too obvious? Xu Ping was unsure whether this was a trap, so he hadn’t made any rash moves in the few days since leaving the Censorate Office.
But today, the Northern Army returned to the capital, and she actually came?
“All ministers may rise.”
The carriage curtain was pulled open slightly by the attendant, allowing everyone to clearly see the imperial countenance.
The woman sitting in the carriage in imperial robes, who else could it be but Xie Wan?
Her complexion was not as pale as everyone had imagined, but she was still very haggard. Xie Wan coughed heavily, “I have come to welcome Consort Wan back to the palace.”
Anyu was deeply moved and rushed towards her, “Your Majesty, how could you come when you are unwell…”
Xie Wan smiled and coughed, her face not looking well, but she seemed more energetic than everyone had expected, “My body is much better. The Imperial Physicians have allowed me to get out of bed. This cold has kept me ill for a long time, causing concern to all ministers.”
“Your subjects are humbled.”
“I congratulate the Northern Army on their triumphant return, cough cough, you have rendered meritorious service in defending the north, I shall reward you—for today, settle in first. Enter the palace during tomorrow’s morning court, and I shall bestow generous rewards. Cough cough cough—” After saying this, she seemed a little tired, and said, “I am a bit weary. The Northern Army will be left to Minister Xie and the Ministry of War to arrange. Consort Wan, let’s return to the palace.”
Xie Yunyu: “Yes.”
“Yes.” Anyu also quickly ran towards her, and without regard for her dirtied clothes, she climbed into the carriage.
The officials watched from afar, and even after the carriage left, they still hadn’t fully recovered their senses.
What did Her Majesty just say?
Tomorrow’s morning court?
“Did I hear correctly? Did Her Majesty say tomorrow’s morning court? We’ve been off for over a month, are we finally going to court?”
“It’s a good thing Her Majesty’s illness is better.”
“That’s right, it’s a good thing.”
Some thought it was a good thing, while others did not.
For example, Xu Ping, whose face turned dark.
When Her Majesty was seriously ill, he feared it was a trap, so he remained quiet and did not act rashly.
But now, he hadn’t regained his power, nor had he suppressed Xie Yunyu, yet Her Majesty was better?
Xu Ping’s hand, hidden in his wide sleeve, clenched into a fist.
Whether this illness was a coincidence or not, Xu Ping didn’t know. He only knew that now that Her Majesty was almost recovered and morning court was resuming, and he no longer had Chu Long’s trust, the days ahead would likely be very difficult.
Forget about revenge, it was hard to say if he would even have a place in this court in the future!
And Anyu, who had acted out a scene with Xie Wan, immediately dropped the act after getting into the carriage.
“Your Majesty is truly skilled at playing the invalid. If I hadn’t been with Your Majesty just a few hours ago, I would have been completely fooled.”
Xie Wan held her hand and smiled without speaking.
She had specifically asked for slightly larger robes, which looked loose when worn, making it seem at first glance as if she had lost a lot of weight. Coupled with her naturally not-so-rosy complexion, and the deliberately feigned illness and a few coughs, almost no one would suspect anything.
Anyu: “Your Majesty deliberately made a trip to the city gates. Xu Ping is probably even more confused about Your Majesty’s intentions.”
“Oh?” Xie Wan asked leisurely, “Anyu has guessed my intentions?”
Anyu tilted her head: “I haven’t guessed. I don’t even know what Your Majesty plans to do.”
“First, you hastily sent Sister Zhou Ning back to the capital, and then I learned that Xu Ping was released. I thought Your Majesty’s trip was to have the Northern Army return to purge the court.”
Xie Wan chuckled softly, “Indeed.”
Anyu was about to laugh but suddenly realized what she had said, froze for a moment, and asked, “Huh?”
“When I am ill, no one will be anxious, but when I am well, they will become anxious. If I continue to be well, some people will naturally lose their patience.” She chuckled softly, with the security of having victory in hand, “It’s alright, we can still have some fun for a while.”
Her Majesty was well, not just well, but greatly recovered.
Not only could she attend court, but her spirit was also better than before.
The Imperial Physicians who came for follow-up consultations all said that Her Majesty’s illness had turned into a blessing in disguise. After a serious illness, much of the accumulated medicinal toxins in her body had been removed.
Some also flattered her by saying that the triumphant return of the Northern Army had dispelled the melancholy in Her Majesty’s heart, which was why she recovered quickly.
There were even storytellers in the folk who absurdly attributed the reason for Her Majesty’s recovery to Consort Wan.
Yes, how wonderful Consort Wan was. Although she was a woman, the laws of Da Yue did not say that women could not marry women, or that women and women could not be a match… She was favored, but not only did she not disrupt the court, she could also protect the country. Which commoner wouldn’t like such a ‘favored consort’?
Suddenly, in the storybooks of the capital, there were many more stories with emperors and generals as protagonists. Of course, the names were different, but everyone knew which two people were being alluded to.
Rumors spread widely among the common people, and some people in the court also began to worry.
Considering the current situation—
The Northern Army returned triumphantly, and Her Majesty rewarded the Northern Army as promised, but one person was conspicuously left out.
That was the general who went to provide support, the daughter of the Xie family, Consort Wan in the palace.
Many people believed that it was not impossible for Xie Anyu to be appointed Empress.
She had rendered meritorious service in suppressing bandits, and at that time, Her Majesty had not rewarded her much. Immediately after, she went to support the north. Now that the three states had ceased hostilities and the northern region was temporarily stable, Xie Anyu also had a hand in it.
According to the current influence of the Xie family, Xie Anyu was now deeply favored by the Emperor and had accumulated considerable merit. Now that everyone in the Northern Army who should be rewarded had been rewarded, only Xie Anyu remained unrewarded…
It was possible that Her Majesty, influenced by whispers, might impulsively decide to make her Empress.
But appointing Xie Anyu as Empress? How could that be allowed?
She was a woman, and Her Majesty was also a woman. If she was made Empress, could they expect the two of them to have children?
Although the customs of Da Yue were open, the attitude towards the principal wife and concubines was completely different. From the imperial family to the common people, ‘favoring concubines and neglecting the principal wife’ was a crime written into the law.
Throughout history, although there were many examples of ‘succession disputes’, generally speaking, only those born of the principal wife were truly qualified to inherit the legitimate line.
How could the vast Da Yue Empire not have any legitimate imperial princes or princesses?
Thus, as long as the reward for Xie Anyu had not been announced, the memorials in the Imperial Study regarding the establishment of an Empress never ceased.
Of course, they were all attempts to dissuade Xie Wan from appointing Anyu as Empress.
How to put it?
Seeing these, Xie Wan found it both amusing and exasperating.
Perhaps the image of Emperor Ruiming being ‘lustful’ was already deeply ingrained in people’s hearts, and Anyu had only entered the palace less than a year ago, so everyone seemed to think that even if she appointed Anyu as Empress, she would still marry other male consorts in the future and eventually give birth to batch after batch of illegitimate imperial princes and princesses.
“The Xie family rules have never included the concept of three wives and four concubines.”
It should be the same for her.
As for children… Xie Wan had no obsession with children. To her, raising Anyu was no different from raising a daughter. Of course, cough, she couldn’t say this to Anyu, Consort Wan would definitely be annoyed and immediately demand to serve her to assert her status as the principal wife.
Xie Wan smiled, not caring.
She continued to flip through the memorials. The next one also broadly advised her to consider the matter of establishing an Empress carefully, and so on. But the handwriting was grand and somewhat familiar.
Xie Wan looked at the signature—
Prince Xian, Chu Tang.
She had to admit, it was quite unexpected.
Not long after Chu Tang began participating in government affairs, Xie Wan had him formally involved and officially granted him the title ‘Xian [Virtuous/Worthy]’.
He had been participating in government for quite some time, but this was the first time Chu Tang had submitted a memorial.
And it was about this matter.
Xie Wan felt vaguely strange.
Logically speaking, if she, as Emperor Ruiming, appointed Anyu as Empress and they had no children, then when she, this sickly person, passed away, Chu Tang’s chances of ascending the throne in the future would be greater, wouldn’t they?
This memorial, however, looked like a loyal minister earnestly advising the Emperor.
Xie Wan twitched her lips, thinking, Grand Consort Qin, you didn’t raise your son well. Or perhaps, this was deliberately used to confuse her?
Xie Wan gently stroked the brush, thinking that she was not as foolish as Emperor Ruiming.
Emperor Ruiming died inexplicably in her previous life. Perhaps even she herself believed that she simply had a weak constitution and couldn’t survive.
But upon closer thought, this reason didn’t quite hold water.
Although it was true that she had been in poor health since childhood, she was the legitimate daughter and was made Crown Princess at a young age. Imperial Physicians had attended to her from childhood to adulthood, so how could her health worsen with more care?
The previous Emperor and Empress had died early, and most of the Grand Consorts in the palace had been buried alive with them. Only the young Grand Consort Qin remained, having survived because her young imperial son was still a child.
As for whether Emperor Ruiming’s eventual death was related to this Grand Consort Qin, Xie Wan couldn’t be certain, but she could be sure that Emperor Ruiming’s weak health into adulthood and lack of children probably had something to do with this Lady Grand Consort.
After all, if Emperor Ruiming died young, then among the Chu imperial family, Chu Tang would be the only remaining heir.
Ascending the throne would be perfectly legitimate.
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